Dawn, The Key
by The Bard2
Summary: A future set story exploring The Key and it's powers
1. Pilot Episode

Title - Dawn, The Key: Prologue  
  
Author - Shane A. Hopkins  
  
Rating - G  
  
Historians Note - This story covers the period between the end of Season 5 to year 2022  
  
Disclaimer - What I don't own. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and 20th Century Fox own Buffy the Vampire Slayer and everything related to them. What I do own. Everything not owned by the above mentioned people / companies is owned by me but you may use any of it as long as you give me credit. There is one exception to this and that is Quinton Everett III, he is mine and you can't use him whatsoever.  
  
Authors Note - To be introduced to Quinton Everett III please read one of my previous stories "Love's Energy"  
  
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Dawn, The Key - Part 1 of 1  
  
We are in a well kept house, we see a middle aged man sitting in a chair with two children at his feet. We recognise the man as Quinton Everett III. The children sitting at his feet are James and Juliet, his nephew and niece.  
  
"Now where shall we start hmm?" he asked the kids.  
  
"The beginning, Uncle Quinn." James answered and his sister nodded.  
  
"The beginning? No that'll take too long if I started there then we will be here forever and a day. I think I'll start at a place where we all know what came before."  
  
"It was the year 2001. The vampire slayer, Buffy Summers had sacrificed her own life to save her sister and the world. She was buried for only a month or so before Willow Rosenberg and Tara Maclay, used magic to bring her back."  
  
"Why'd they do that Uncle?" Juliet asked.  
  
"Well they felt that the world would be a much better place with her in it, and I personally would have to agree." Quinn replied.  
  
"You would." James said with a smirk. Quinn frowned at the youngster.  
  
"Ok back to the story, The Slayer is a pivotal player in the forthcoming apocalypse so she needed to live but obviously she couldn't if she was dead but anyway, She faced many hardships and problems but her main goal for next 20 years was to protect The Key and to make sure that the Knights of Byzantium didn't destroy it."  
  
"The Key had made into her sister Dawn by the original Guardians of the Key, but the demon god Glory destroyed them, but in 2007 the order was reformed and they  
  
entered into an agreement with the Witches Magical Directorship and the Watchers Council under the leadership of Rupert Giles and Buffy, that agreement would allow Dawn to live a normal life along with all those who knew her secret."  
  
"What about the slayers friends?" Juliet asked.  
  
"Willow and Tara got married in 2011 and their friendship with Dawn and Buffy was enough to help see them through several potentially apocalyptic disasters. The power of their friendship was added to by the friendship of Xander and Anya."  
  
"Xander and Anya had gotten married a year before Willow and Tara, they still have their problems but they work through them. Anya being an ex-demon is still working through becoming human, I think she might just get through it before she dies."  
  
"And what about Buffy Uncle?" asked James.  
  
"Buffy, yes well she fell in love with the prince of her dreams and got married in 2013, she now splits her time between England and the Watchers Council and Sunnydale and her friends. She still slays vampires and demons and other creatures that inhabit the night."  
  
"The Key?" Juliet prompted.  
  
"The Key yes well, Dawn's powers grew as she got older. She sought out guidance to harness them in 2006 when she nearly destroyed a building. She remembered a  
  
meeting she had had in which she meet the perfect person to become her mentor. Using a card he had given Buffy, Dawn contacted him and he agreed to help her."  
  
"And her husband, Uncle, when did she meet him?" Juliet asked.  
  
"I do wish you wouldn't rush me." Quinn replied before continuing "Dawn meet her husband, Jason, in 2008 while she and her mentor were travelling to Tibet on a quest. Their love blossomed and it became apparent to all three that Dawn and Jason were meant to be together, so in 2012 they were married two years later she had twins one female and one male."  
  
"And her powers?" James asked with a gleam in his eye.  
  
"They have continued to grow to this day neither her nor her mentor know when or where they will stop."  
  
"Do her kids have any powers?" asked Juliet.  
  
"We don't know but if they do then they won't show until the hit fourteen years of age."  
  
A voice comes from the next room "Jason, Juliet it's bed time."  
  
"We'll finish this story another time kids, you better do what you're mother says." Quinn tells the two children.  
  
As the kids get up a brunette haired woman enters the room, she appears to be in her mid thirties with hair down to the middle of her back.  
  
"Quinn are you telling my kids scary stories again." she asks  
  
"No, Dawn, I am not." Quinn replies.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED IN DAWN, THE KEY: GUARDIANS OF THE KEY 


	2. Guardians of The Key part 1

Title - Dawn, The Key: Guardians of The Key Part 1  
  
Author - Shane A. Hopkins (thesorcererbard@I-am-the-key.com)  
  
Rating - PG (Warning - one swear word)  
  
Disclaimer - What I don't own. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and 20th Century Fox own Buffy the Vampire Slayer and everything related to them. The Ghost Roads, The Gatekeeper and The Gatehouse come from the Buffy, The Vampire Slayer novels The Gatekeeper Trilogy Books 1, 2 and 3 by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder (Great set of books get em if you can) What I do own. Everything not owned by the above mentioned people / companies is owned by me but you may use any of it as long as you give me credit. There is one exception to this and that is Quinton Everett III, he is mine and you can't use him whatsoever.  
  
Authors Note - To be introduced to Quinton Everett III please read one of my previous stories "Love's Energy"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------  
  
Guardians of The Key - Part 1  
  
Dawn was in the kitchen of her well kept house doing the dishes from the evening meal when she noticed that it was time for her two kids to go to bed. She put the plate she was cleaning in the dish rack and began walking towards the living room.  
  
As she got nearer she heard the voice of her brother-in-law telling her son and daughter a story.  
  
"Jason, Juliet it's bed time." Dawn called as she got closer to the room.  
  
"We'll finish this story another time kids, you better do what you're mother says." she heard Quinton Everett III tell the kids.  
  
"Quinn are you telling my kids scary stories again." she asked as she walked into the room just in time to see her twin children get up and head off to their bedrooms.  
  
"No, Dawn, I am not." Quinn replies from the seat in the corner of the room in which he was sitting, "I promised you I wouldn't and this is one of the few promises I intend to keep."  
  
"I've heard that before." she said with a smile.  
  
"When does Jason get back from work?" Quinn asked getting up.  
  
"He should have been back by now." Dawn said walking over to the main window in the room and looking out.  
  
"He'll be alright." Quinn said coming up to stand beside her. He put an arm around her shoulder and she leant her head on his shoulder. "He's trained for just this type of mission, you knew that when you two met."  
  
"I know but I just wish Buffy wouldn't keep asking him to go on these missions." she told him.  
  
"My wife knows exactly what she's doing, not to mention that she's the vampire slayer." Quinn said as Dawn raised her head.  
  
"Yes I know the drill she's the slayer and I'm the key." she said the wobble in her voice was audible, "I just worry about him that's all."  
  
"Yes, well," Quinn said looking behind them, "I think you need to calm down just a tad."  
  
Quinn gently turned Dawn's head so she was looking at the book case against the wall opposite them. All the books that should have been on the shelf were floating in mid air some flapping as if to stay aloft.  
  
"Oh shit." Dawn swore and in response the books dropped to the ground with a thud.  
  
"Why don't you see if you can use you powers to put them back?" Quinn suggested just as the phone rang.  
  
"Answer" Dawn said in the direction of the phone base. The TV came alive and an image of Buffy Summers appeared, she was aged 41 and despite all the slaying she had undertaken she still looked beautiful, at least to her husband's eyes.  
  
"Buffy, what is it?" Quinn asked.  
  
"We have a problem." she replied.  
  
"Jason?" Dawn breathed.  
  
"Sort of, he's been kidnapped." Buffy answered.  
  
"By who?" Quinn asked.  
  
"The Knights of Byzantium, they say they'll release him in exchange for the key." Buffy said.  
  
"Where are you?" Dawn asked her sister.  
  
"London, the Watchers Council Headquarters, Giles, Willow and Tara are already here and Xander and Anya are on their way." Buffy answered.  
  
We can be there in about half an hour." Quinn told her.  
  
"But you're in Sunnydale how can you do that even Dawn's abilities aren't that great are they?" Buffy asked looking startled.  
  
"No they aren't but she's in a very agitated state." Quinn began.  
  
"Which I can see by the books on the floor." Buffy interrupted.  
  
".and that coupled with my magic should be enough." Quinn finished ignoring the interruption.  
  
"What about James and Juliet?" Dawn asked.  
  
"Bring them with, Willow and Tara have been dieing to see them." Buffy answered with a smirk.  
  
Forty minutes later in a big Victorian building in the center of London a semi-happy reunion was occurring.  
  
"Auntie Willow, Auntie Tara!" James and Juliet exclaimed when they saw the two witches. The two eight year olds ran and gave them each a big hug.  
  
"What no hug for your Uncle Xander and Auntie Anya?" Xander said coming up behind Quinn and Dawn who were standing back watching the kids and the witches.  
  
"Xand, Ann great to see ya again." Quinn said, "Willow, where's Buffy?" he asked turning to the red-haired witch.  
  
"She's in the war-room." she answered.  
  
"Does she ever leave it?" asked Dawn.  
  
"Not often." Quinn answered before walking past Tara and Willow and down the corridor heading to the War-room at the other end of the building.  
  
"Honey, what's going on? How did they get Jason?" Quinn asked Buffy as he entered the room.  
  
"They grabbed him just as he was about to enter the front door of this very building, this new bread of knights are a hell of a lot braver than the original sect." Buffy replied pointing to a television that was playing what looked like surveillance camera footage. It showed a man in his mid thirty's getting out of a car and walking towards the front door when literally out of nowhere came four men dressed in armour grabbed him and as suddenly as they appeared they disappeared.  
  
"Ok darling" Buffy said sarcastically, "What was that?"  
  
"I do believe that that was a portal." Quinn replied winding the tape back and watching it again.  
  
"What like the ones leading to the Ghost Roads?" Buffy asked.  
  
"Yea, but I spoke to Jacques yesterday, he told me he was shutting all portals except the one in the Gatehouse because something human was trying to get into the Ghost Roads." Quinn replied.  
  
"And because only things that have their roots in magic can enter he couldn't allow that." Buffy finished.  
  
"Phone on, dial the Gatehouse." Quinn said in the direction of the phone.  
  
Thirty seconds later Jacques Regnier appeared on the screen, the boy who looked to be in his late teens or early twenties was only the fourth gatekeeper since the mid fifteen hundreds, he had taken over the mantle of Keeper in 1999 with the help of Buffy and the entire gang.  
  
"Buffy, Quinn what a nice surprise." he said, "Or not." he amended after seeing their expressions, "What's happened?"  
  
"The Knights of Byzantium, they took Dawn's husband, Jason." Buffy explained.  
  
"He was kidnapped by people that came through what looked like a portal to the Ghost Roads, could that be possible?" Quinn asked.  
  
"No the Ghost Roads are firmly shut I even shut the portal here at the house." Regnier answered.  
  
"Great." Quinn said looking disappointed, "Hey Jacques, could you open a portal anywhere you wanted and link it to another point that only you wanted?"  
  
"Yea, I suppose so, Why?" the boy answered.  
  
"Just stay on the line." Quinn said turning towards the corridor and called "Dawn come here for a sec."  
  
"Yea, what is it?" she answered as she walked into the room.  
  
"We're gonna get your husband back." Quinn answered with a small smile.  
  
"Jacques if you would be so kind as to open a portal here and link it to the room where Jason is being held." Quinn said turning to the screen.  
  
With that a shimmering circle appeared against the wall.  
  
"I can not seem to make the other opening." Regnier said with a look of concentration on his face.  
  
"Why?" Quinn asked.  
  
"There's something in the way." the Gatekeeper answered.  
  
"Actually in the Ghost Roads, is that possible?" Dawn asked looking between Quinn and the screen with the Gatekeeper on it.  
  
"No." they both answered in unison.  
  
"But can we get onto the Ghost Roads?" Buffy asked.  
  
"I have opened the portal at your end, you should be able to go in and see what is causing the problem." Regnier answered.  
  
"Ok we gotta go, everyone armed?" Buffy asked stepping towards the front of the group.  
  
"As armed as I ever am." Quinn asked.  
  
Buffy, Dawn and Quinn entered the portal which closed behind them.  
  
To be continued. 


	3. Guardians of The Key part 2

Title - Dawn, The Key: Guardians of The Key Part 2  
  
Author - Shane A. Hopkins (thesorcererbard@I-am-the-key.com)  
  
Rating - PG  
  
Disclaimer - What I don't own. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and 20th Century Fox own Buffy the Vampire Slayer and everything related to them. The Ghost Roads, The Gatekeeper and The Gatehouse come from the Buffy, The Vampire Slayer novels The Gatekeeper Trilogy Books 1, 2 and 3 by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder (Great set of books get em if you can) What I do own. Everything not owned by the above mentioned people / companies is owned by me but you may use any of it as long as you give me credit. There is one exception to this and that is Quinton Everett III, he is mine and you can't use him whatsoever.  
  
Authors Note - To be introduced to Quinton Everett III please read one of my previous stories "Love's Energy"  
  
Authors Note 2 - The Hell's Circle does not exist to my knowledge. If anyone thinks it does exist then email me.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------  
  
Guardians of The Key - Part 2  
  
The Ghost Roads were just like Buffy remembered, lots and lots of grey.  
  
"Which way?" asked Dawn.  
  
"That way." Quinn answered pointing forward and slightly to the left.  
  
The trio set off, walking in silence, ignoring the spirits that tried to stop them.  
  
After thirty minutes of walking they spotted a black dot on the horizon. As they got closer the saw that it was large, very large.  
  
"How did a boat get here?" Buffy asked.  
  
"That's not just any boat, that's a cruse liner from the 1940's, the 'Fulconelli' it disappeared into what was known as the Hell's Circle." Quinn said walking up to it.  
  
"The Hell's Circle? where's that?" Dawn asked coming up behind him.  
  
"It was just off the Californian coast." Quinn turned round to face the two women, "It vanished in early 1975."  
  
"Any connection to you?" Buffy asked looking worried, she knew that her husband was born in January of 1975.  
  
"No, I was born on the other side of the." Quinn started, "You know I actually have no idea."  
  
"Could this be what the Gatekeeper was having problems with?" Dawn asked.  
  
"No it is not what I was having problems with." all three heard the Gatekeepers voice in their heads.  
  
"How long have you been listening in?" Quinn asked him.  
  
"I only caught your explanation of what happened to the ship." The Gatekeeper replied.  
  
"How long has it been here?" Dawn asked.  
  
"This is where it vanished to." he said.  
  
"So there could be something on board we could use." Quinn said.  
  
"Shall we go check it out?" Dawn asked as she started to levitate off what passed for ground in the Ghost Roads.  
  
"Hang on." Buffy said going up to Quinn.  
  
"Come on." Quinn said taking her in his arms and levitating them both up after Dawn.  
  
"This place is creepy." Dawn said walking a few paces ahead of the other two, "Shouldn't there be bodies or something?"  
  
"Yes there should." Quinn answered.  
  
"Then where are they?" asked Buffy.  
  
"I don't know, Gatekeeper?" Quinn said stopping walking and looking into the air above them.  
  
"I.I do not know." he answered.  
  
"Quinn! Come here quick!" called Dawn from further down the corridor. She was looking into one of the rooms.  
  
Quinn ran to where she was standing.  
  
"Oh my god." Buffy said putting her hand to her mouth.  
  
"We have to go, now!" Quinn said as he pulled the two women away from the door.  
  
As the ran down the corridor they didn't notice a shadow come out of the room they had looked in and follow them down the corridor.  
  
"What could do that to that many people?" Dawn asked as they walked at a brisk pace away from the horror they had seen in the ship.  
  
"A creature that shouldn't exist." Quinn answered walking slightly behind her, "A Grunatholite Demon, I think they called it at Uni, they were supposedly wiped out during the third demonic war."  
  
"When was that?" Dawn asked.  
  
"About, oh, five billion years ago." Quinn answered.  
  
"So, what does this demon do?" Buffy asked, "and how do I kill it?"  
  
"It sucks the very life from beings once the life has gone it sucks all the liquid from the bodies." Quinn answered, "And you can't kill it, sure you can take it apart but it will just reform."  
  
"Rocket launcher?" Dawn asked looking at Buffy with a smile.  
  
"No, that wouldn't work." Quinn told them, "The only thing we can hope for is that it doesn't follow us out into the world."  
  
Fifteen minutes later, Quinn called a halt to their trek.  
  
"This is the place where we get out." he said, "Gatekeeper, if you please?"  
  
"Certainly." he answered.  
  
A portal began to form right in front of them, through it they could all see Jason tied to a chair in an empty room.  
  
"Dawn!" Jason cried as she jumped through it.  
  
"Jason!" she cried back as she ran up to him and began to untie the rope that held him in the chair.  
  
"Jason are you all right?" Buffy asked coming through the portal followed by Quinn  
  
"Yea, they said they just wanted to use me as bait." he answered.  
  
"Yea we know, they want Dawn." Quinn told him.  
  
"Well they can't have her, she's all mine." he said with a smile getting up and giving her a huge hug.  
  
"Come on we gotta go, before they come and check on you." Buffy said.  
  
The four of them ran into the portal which closed behind them  
  
"Gatekeeper? Are you there?" Quinn asked.  
  
"Yes, I am." he answered.  
  
"Can you make the trip back any shorter?" Quinn asked the thin air.  
  
"I think I can, why?" the voice asked.  
  
"Because I think you have a Grunatholite Demon in here." Quinn said.  
  
"What? Are you sure?" The Gatekeeper's voice was full of fear.  
  
"On the ship, what had happened to the people on it, it matches the description we were taught at Uni." Quinn told him walking away from the other three.  
  
"Then we may have a bigger problem than we thought." The Gatekeeper told him, "Wait a sec, I'll be right there."  
  
There was a shimmering in front of Quinn and The Gatekeeper appeared out of thin air.  
  
"What do you know about Grunatholite Demons?" Quinn asked the boy.  
  
"Only what my Great-Grandfather wrote in his journals, and that was essentially what you know." he replied.  
  
"We have absolutely no way to kill it, do we?" Quinn asked.  
  
"No." he answered.  
  
"Could we bind it to the Gatehouse?" Quinn wanted to know.  
  
"We might but it will take both of us to do it." Jacques answered.  
  
"Well we'll look at it once we get back to London." Quinn said as he walked back to the others.  
  
Half an hour later they stopped and The Gatekeeper opened a portal that lead into the War-room of the Watchers Council.  
  
"Dad!" cried the two kids running to Jason and giving him a huge hug.  
  
"Excuse me but there is a call coming in and we can't trace the origin." said a technician walking up to Buffy and Quinn.  
  
"Let's see it." Buffy told him.  
  
The screen flicked on and a man Buffy had never seen before appeared and said "Because of your actions here today, there now exists a state of war between the Knights of Byzantium and The Guardians of The Key and their allies." with that the screen flicked off.  
  
"Who was that?" Buffy asked looking at Quinn who had a shocked look on his face.  
  
"That was Socrate Byzantium, the founder of the Knights."  
  
To be continued. 


	4. Guardians of The Key part 3

Title - Dawn, The Key: Guardians of The Key Part 3  
  
Author - Shane A. Hopkins (thesorcererbard@I-am-the-key.com)  
  
Rating - PG  
  
Disclaimer - What I don't own. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and 20th Century Fox own Buffy the Vampire Slayer and everything related to them. The Ghost Roads, The Gatekeeper and The Gatehouse come from the Buffy, The Vampire Slayer novels The Gatekeeper Trilogy Books 1, 2 and 3 by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder (Great set of books get em if you can) What I do own. Everything not owned by the above mentioned people / companies is owned by me but you may use any of it as long as you give me credit. There is one exception to this and that is Quinton Everett III, he is mine and you can't use him whatsoever.  
  
Authors Note - To be introduced to Quinton Everett III please read one of my previous stories "Love's Energy"  
  
Authors Note 2 - WARNING - There is a surprise ending but don't worry, can't say more with out giving it away :) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------  
  
Guardians of The Key - Part 3  
  
"But he would be ancient. How can he be alive?" Buffy asked.  
  
"Byzantium made a deal with the Unholy Tarem, a group of extremely powerful  
  
demons who think that the best way to secure their own dimension is to destroy The Key" Quinn answered. They were in the War-Room at the Watchers Headquarters. The Gatekeeper had decided to stay and help, so he was seated to Quinn's left and Buffy to Quinn's right. Seated around the table with them were Willow, Tara, Giles, Xander, Anya, Dawn and Jason. "The deal was that he would live as long as The Key existed, so he is essentially immortal."  
  
"Life without death is a waste of time." The Gatekeeper said folding his hands on the table.  
  
"I totally agree." Quinn said, "But that still leaves us with a war on our hands."  
  
"Should we call Angel?" Willow asked leaning foreword.  
  
"Yes that may be prudent." Giles answered, "Ever since he took control of Wolfram & Hart he has provided us with a great amount of help."  
  
Angel was in his top floor office, luckily it was night, looking at the phone screen as Buffy and Quinn outlined the situation.  
  
". and he then declared war on the Guardians and their allies." Quinn finished.  
  
"And since that includes Wolfram & Hart you decide to tell me and ask for my help." It was a statement not a question.  
  
"Right." Buffy replied, "Is Wesley still there? or did he go off on another wild demon chase?"  
  
"He's here." Angel replied with a smile. "Wesley!"  
  
"Angel?" came an English accented voice from the next office.  
  
"Wes come in here for a bit." Angel called to him.  
  
Wesley Wyndham-Price came in from his office and when he saw who was on the  
  
screen he said "Hello Buffy, Quinn, what's up?"  
  
"We have a war on our hands." Buffy told him.  
  
"Byzantium?" Wesley asked.  
  
"Yea, how'd you know?" Quinn asked.  
  
"The fact that you, as leader of the Guardians, is involved, and the fact that this was prophesied over three thousand years ago." Wesley replied.  
  
"Come again?" Quinn said with an amazed look on his face.  
  
"The prophesy of Qua'no'kee. He prophesied that the defeated silver clad men would rise and wage war on the shield of the, umm, turning mechanism, I guess they mean The Key and the Guardians."  
  
"Well we won't go down with out a fight." Quinn told them with a smile.  
  
"Yes well you have the full support of us and I think we could swing the support of the US Army." Angel told them.  
  
"The Army?" Buffy asked.  
  
"Didn't you hear?" Angel asked, "Gunn just got promoted, and he's now one of the Joint Chiefs."  
  
"Gunn got promoted? What rank is he now?" Buffy asked.  
  
"Five star General." Cordelia said as she came into the room, "Hello Buffy."  
  
"Cordelia, and just how are you and your husband?" Quinn asked.  
  
"Gunn and I are just fine." she answered, "Did I hear you talking about a war?"  
  
"Yes, why?" Angel asked.  
  
"Because Gunn just called, the Joint Chiefs have been called into an emergency meeting with President Trachtenberg, it seems an organisation has warned the US to stay out of a military conflict that will be brewing" Cordy told all four of them.  
  
"And just what will the President be doing?" Buffy asked.  
  
"She will be erring on the side of caution and will not getting involved." she answered.  
  
"Damn." Quinn swore.  
  
"Could Gunn change her mind?" Buffy asked.  
  
"I don't know but I'll give him a call and keep him and you up to speed." Cordy told her before turning around and walking out of the office.  
  
"Ok I'll send someone to you to liase between us." Angel said to Buffy and Quinn.  
  
"Alright that will be great." Quinn said.  
  
He began to turn away from the phone when Angel said "Hey when was the last time any of you were in Sunnydale?"  
  
"About five days ago. Why?" Quinn answered.  
  
"Well I've gotten some weird reports of some new type of vampire rising from graves of people who died more that five years ago." Angel told them.  
  
"Is it a bad problem? I mean how many cases of them have there been?" Buffy asked looking interested.  
  
"I have only five recorded but there may be more." Angel replied.  
  
"Let us know if there are any more cases." Buffy said, "Goodbye Angel."  
  
"Goodbye Buffy, Quinn" Angel replied before tuning the phone screen off.  
  
"Are you sure you should have told them of these new vampires?" Wesley asked.  
  
"They would have found out sooner or later." Angel replied.  
  
"Dawn, Jason why don't you two take the kids home and activate the magical shielding." Quinn said walking up to the couple who were standing next to the main table.  
  
"Ok but let us know if there is anything we can do." Dawn told him.  
  
"I promise." Quinn replied.  
  
As Dawn, Jason and the twins left the room Quinn turned to Willow and Tara.  
  
"Can you two find a location on the Knights HQ? Use whatever means you think are necessary." Quinn asked them.  
  
"On it." Willow replied moving towards the Cray Supercomputer off to the side of the room with Tara only a few steps behind her.  
  
"There is something that could help us in their HQ, isn't there Gatekeeper?" Quinn said.  
  
"Yes, there is a scroll that predicts the 'War of Two Knights', you know that could mean the Guardians and the Knights." The boy replied.  
  
"Yes I now believe it does." Quinn replied, "If we could get it then we would have a serious tactical advantage."  
  
"I agree." Buffy said coming to stand beside her husband.  
  
"We're in." Willow called from the console of the computer.  
  
"Good, where is the HQ?" Quinn asked coming to stand behind her.  
  
"Jason are you Ok?" Dawn asked her husband as they sat in the personal jet that was the property of the Guardians.  
  
"Hmm." he said not really paying attention.  
  
Dawn lightly hit him on the arm and asked him again.  
  
"Oh I'm fine I just worry about James and Juliet, we need to keep them safe but we can't if we both keep having to run off and save the world." he answered.  
  
"I know but I am The Key and that means that they have power in their blood, well maybe not their blood, but in their souls." Dawn said.  
  
"We will be experiencing some turbulence please observe that the fasten seatbelt sign is lit, and we ask you to make sure your seats and tray tables are in their upright and proper place." came the pilots voice over the intercom.  
  
"Here we go again." Dawn said with a small smile.  
  
"Contact the jet now!" Buffy called as she ran into the communications room  
  
followed closely by Quinn and Giles.  
  
"I'm sorry Ma'am but they are near a severe electrical disturbance and that is interfering with our attempts to contact them." the comms officer.  
  
"Shit, they're flying right into trouble." Quinn swore.  
  
"Dawn, it's not usually this rough is it?" Jason asked.  
  
"No, something must be wrong." she answered.  
  
The plane began to lose altitude at an exponential rate.  
  
Thirty seconds later it crashed in a fireball in a farm on the coast of Ireland.  
  
To be continued. 


	5. Guardians of The Key part 4

Title - Dawn, The Key: Guardians of The Key Part 4  
  
Author - Shane A. Hopkins (thesorcererbard@I-am-the-key.com)  
  
Rating - PG  
  
Disclaimer - What I don't own. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and 20th Century Fox own Buffy the Vampire Slayer and everything related to them. The Ghost Roads, The Gatekeeper and The Gatehouse come from the Buffy, The Vampire Slayer novels The Gatekeeper Trilogy Books 1, 2 and 3 by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder (Great set of books get em if you can) What I do own. Everything not owned by the above mentioned people / companies is owned by me but you may use any of it as long as you give me credit. There is one exception to this and that is Quinton Everett III, he is mine and you can't use him whatsoever.  
  
Authors Note - To be introduced to Quinton Everett III please read one of my previous stories "Love's Energy"  
  
Authors Note 2 - The Hell's Circle does not exist to my knowledge. If anyone thinks it does exist then email me.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------  
  
Guardians of The Key - Part 4  
  
"We have a report from the Air Safety Administration, the jet when down on the coast of Ireland there were only four bodies recovered and none of them match Dawn, Jason or the kids." The comms officer informed the group gathered in the conference room.  
  
Buffy, Willow and Tara all breathed an audible sigh of relief.  
  
"It sounds like they were able to get off the plane before it went down." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
"Yes but where did they go?" Quinn asked.  
  
"The Ghost Roads?" Buffy suggested.  
  
The Gatekeeper tilted his head, "No they are not there, could Dawn have opened a portal?" "Yes, her power was just about at that level." Quinn replied.  
  
"Could she have opened a portal to an alternate dimension?" the boy asked looking at the older man.  
  
"A parallel universe, you mean?" Quinn said looking thoughtful, "Yes I think she could."  
  
"Well I think we could use the Ghost Roads to find them." The Gatekeeper told them all.  
  
"How?" asked Buffy.  
  
"The Ghost Roads connect all universes with the right guidance a person could travel between them." he replied.  
  
"Could you guide us?" Willow asked.  
  
"I can and so could Quinn." The Gatekeeper responded looking at Quinn.  
  
"I could?" Quinn said looking intrigued, "How?"  
  
"Well you are the son of two powerful sorcerers you were born into powerful magick the Ghost Roads respond to that." The most powerful sorcerer in the world told him.  
  
"Can I open portals to the Ghost Roads?" Quinn asked.  
  
"Yes." was his simple answer.  
  
"Teach me." Quinn said.  
  
Three hours later Quinn was ready to go.  
  
"Buffy!, are you ready to go?" Quinn called to her.  
  
"Yea." Buffy came from the direction of the armoury.  
  
Quinn looked her up and down, "Are you sure you're bringing enough weapons?"  
  
Buffy had about her person, twelve wooden stakes, a Browning hi-power 9mm gun with holy water filled bullets, a sword strapped to her back and she was carrying another which she handed to Quinn, "Just in case." she said with a smile.  
  
Returning her smile Quinn took the sword and attached it to the back of his duster, "Just in case." he said handing her a powder in a small plastic bag.  
  
"What is it?" she asked.  
  
"A sunlight spell, just throw it up into the air and it will produce sunlight." He replied leaning in to place a tender kiss on her lips.  
  
She returned his kiss, placing her arms around his shoulders.  
  
"Ahem." someone from behind them cleared their throat.  
  
Buffy and Quinn broke their embrace and turned to see Willow, Tara and Giles standing there.  
  
"Are we ready to go?" Giles asked.  
  
"We are." Quinn replied.  
  
He walked up to the nearest wall and drew a door on it with his finger, when he was finished the door became real and he grabbed the handle and opened it.  
  
Through the door Buffy could see the grey expanse of the Ghost Roads.  
  
"After you." Quinn said holding the door for the women and Giles.  
  
Quinn closed the door behind him and moved to the front of the group and turned to face them, "Ok now Giles, Willow and Tara you go that way," Quinn said pointing to his left "And The Gatekeeper will guide you, Buffy, you and I will go this way," he said pointing to hid right "guided by me."  
  
"What if we run into trouble?" Tara asked.  
  
"Take this." Quinn told them handing Giles a small metal box, "It's an interdimensional communications device."  
  
"How does it work?" Giles asked.  
  
"You hold it to your forehead and speak, since there are only two you will get through to me." Quinn answered holding up a matching box.  
  
"Ok, we'll see you later then." Giles said before turning and walking off in the direction Quinn had indicated followed by the two witches.  
  
"Come on Buffy I think I can feel Dawn over this way." Quinn said leading the way.  
  
"Here, she's here." Quinn said stopping and looking around.  
  
"Can you open a portal?" Buffy asked.  
  
"Yes." Quinn answered kneeling down and drawing a circle in the air. The circle shimmered and then vanished leaving a hole that looked into a warehouse.  
  
There sitting in the middle of the giant room was Dawn looking a bit worse for wear.  
  
"Dawn!" Buffy cried as she ran to her sister.  
  
"Buffy!" Dawn cried as she stood and hugged her.  
  
"Are you ok?" Quinn said as he came up to the two women.  
  
"Yea but James and the kids aren't here, where are they?" Dawn said with the panic audible in her voice.  
  
"We don't know but Giles, Willow and Tara are looking for them, but we should go before someone finds us" Quinn said walking back to the portal and allowing the women to go through before hopping in and closing it behind him.  
  
"Giles do you think we can find them?" Willow asked the older man.  
  
"I hope so, Willow, I really hope so." he replied.  
  
"The children should be here." came the Gatekeepers voice.  
  
Just ahead of them a portal began to open and through it they could see what looked like a school classroom.  
  
When the portal stabilised they went they went through and looked around.  
  
"James! Juliet!" called Willow.  
  
"Auntie Willow." came an answering call from under what could be thought of as the teachers desk.  
  
The two eight year olds came out from under it and ran to the two witches.  
  
"We should go before someone finds us." Tara said.  
  
"Right." Giles said leading the way back to the portal.  
  
"Auntie Willow, where's Mom and Dad?" Juliet asked.  
  
"We don't know but your Auntie Buffy and Uncle Quinn are looking for them."  
  
Willow replied, "Giles, are we going back to the Council building?"  
  
"Yes, that's what Quinn asked us to do." Giles replied before taking the communications cube out and placing it against his forehead, "Quinn, are you there?"  
  
"Yes Giles, I am." only Giles could hear his voice.  
  
"We have the kids and we are heading back to the Council building." Giles told him.  
  
"Tell the kids we have their mother and are looking for their father." Quinn replied.  
  
"Dawn, Giles and the others have the kids and they're heading back to the Council building." Quinn told her as he came back to the two sisters.  
  
Dawn let out a sigh of relief.  
  
"So where do we look for Jason?" Buffy asked Quinn.  
  
"Well I think we should look over there." he replied pointing to his left.  
  
"He's here somewhere." Quinn said, he had stopped at a nondescript spot and began to draw a portal.  
  
Once the portal had finished forming they hopped through.  
  
"Um Quinn, something's happened." Buffy told him  
  
"What?" he said turning around and staring in amazement at his wife and her sister.  
  
All three looked like they had in 2001 and as they looked around they noticed that the room was identical to Buffy's from the same period.  
  
"Let's go down stairs." Buffy said leading the way.  
  
As they headed down the stairs they heard Willow and Tara's voices coming from the living room.  
  
"Willow, Tara, what are you doing here?" Buffy asked.  
  
"CUT!" yelled a voice from behind them, "Sarah, what are you doing?"  
  
To be continued. 


	6. Guardians of The Key part 5

Title - Dawn, The Key: Guardians of The Key Part 5  
  
Author - Shane A. Hopkins (thesorcererbard@I-am-the-key.com)  
  
Rating - PG  
  
Disclaimer - What I don't own. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and 20th Century Fox own Buffy the Vampire Slayer and everything related to them. The Ghost Roads, The Gatekeeper and The Gatehouse come from the Buffy, The Vampire Slayer novels The Gatekeeper Trilogy Books 1, 2 and 3 by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder (Great set of books get em if you can) What I do own. Everything not owned by the above mentioned people / companies is owned by me but you may use any of it as long as you give me credit. There is one exception to this and that is Quinton Everett III, he is mine and you can't use him whatsoever.  
  
Authors Note - To be introduced to Quinton Everett III please read one of my previous stories "Love's Energy"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------  
  
Guardians of The Key - Part 5  
  
"Huh?" Buffy said as she turned around to see a film crew standing there in the doorway to the dining room.  
  
"Sarah you are supposed to wait at the top of the stairs until I give the signal to Shane here, and Shane you were supposed to keep Sarah up there, and Michelle what are you doing here you're not in this scene." said the man standing to the right of the cameraman.  
  
"Where am I?" Buffy asked.  
  
"Sarah are you alright?" the man asked.  
  
"Tempus Antarcticus." said Quinn from behind Buffy and everything froze.  
  
"Buffy I think we may have crossed into a reality where magic and the Slayer don't exist as anything but an idea, and it seems someone in this reality has cast your alter egos in what looks like a TV series or a movie." he said.  
  
"How did this happen?" Dawn asked.  
  
"I don't know, but perhaps we should go before someone clicks that we are not our counterparts." Quinn said leading the way up the stairs.  
  
"Shouldn't we find out who we are and if Jason is here?" Buffy asked.  
  
"He has enough sense to stay close to where he entered this reality so I don't think he's here." Quinn answered as they reached Buffy's room. He opened the portal and they climbed through into the Ghost Roads.  
  
"We're back to normal." Dawn commented.  
  
"Yes, that is one weird reality." Quinn said.  
  
"Hey what's this?" Buffy said pulling a wallet out of her pocket. she opened it and pulled out a drivers licence and a photo. "This must be my alter egos wallet."  
  
"Why?" asked Quinn  
  
"Because the name on this licence is Sarah Michelle Gellar and the person in this photo looks like what I did in 2001, I have no idea who the person with her is though." Buffy said handing the licence and photo to Quinn.  
  
"I know who this is he exists in our reality, his name is Freddie Prinze Jr, he's an actor." Quinn said before handing them back to Buffy.  
  
"Quinn, I have located Jason." came The Gatekeeper's voice.  
  
"Where?" Quinn asked.  
  
"He's in the Ghost Roads and heading towards you now." The Gatekeeper replied.  
  
"How did he get into the Ghost Roads?" Dawn asked.  
  
"The Gatekeeper's counterpart helped me." came Jason's voice as he came into sight.  
  
Dawn ran up to him and gave him a huge hug.  
  
"I have a counterpart? well will wonders never end. " came The Gatekeeper's voice, "I was led to understand that I and the Gatehouse were the only ones in existence."  
  
"Well we should get back to the Council building." Buffy said moving closer to Quinn.  
  
"I agree." he replied.  
  
So the four of them set off on the trek back through the Ghost Roads. Buffy and Quinn walking just outside hearing range of Dawn and Jason.  
  
"You know that he shouldn't have been able to just walk out of the Ghost Roads and happen to run into The Gatekeeper, don't you?" Buffy said to her husband who had his arm around her shoulder.  
  
"I know, and that's worrying me." Quinn replied, "Gatekeeper, are you there?"  
  
"Yes and I heard what you said, and I agree with you." The Gatekeeper's voice said, "I have looked through all the journals of the past Gatekeeper's and I am now sure that there is only one of me."  
  
"What should we do?" Buffy asked the Gatekeeper and Quinn.  
  
"Could he have been hypnotised?" The Gatekeeper asked.  
  
"No, as far as I know he has always resisted all attempts to hypnotise him." Buffy answered.  
  
"Um, I have a bad feeling." Quinn said in a hushed voice. "What if he was switched while the Knights were holding him hostage?"  
  
"Switched with what?" The Gatekeeper's voice asked.  
  
"A memorphic Demon perhaps?" Quinn said.  
  
"If so then Dawn's in danger." Buffy said as she started to turn to go and get her sister.  
  
Quinn stopped her, "No wait, I have an idea."  
  
"Jason, don't ever leave me like that again." Dawn said hugging her husband to her.  
  
"Hon I promise I will never leave you ever." he told her as he leaned in towards her and kissed her passionately.  
  
Dawn returned the kiss.  
  
"Jason!" Quinn's voice interrupted their romantic interlude.  
  
"What?" Jason called back.  
  
"Come here!" he yelled back.  
  
"Ok." he ran to where Quinn was standing.  
  
Dawn began to follow him when Buffy stopped her, "Stay here."  
  
"What is it Quinn?" Jason asked as he came up next to Quinn.  
  
"Nothing really, just this!" he said as he thrust his fist into Jason's chest.  
  
Jason just stared as the blood flowed out of the hole.  
  
"NO!" screamed Dawn as she broke free of her sisters grasp and ran to her husband.  
  
Jason was still standing despite the fact that most of his chest was missing.  
  
"You fool, you have no idea what you're messing with." he said, his voice was no longer human, in fact it could barely be called a voice.  
  
"Actually I think we know exactly what we are dealing with." The Gatekeeper said appearing next to Quinn.  
  
Jason's skin fell away to reveal his real form. It was dripping with green mucus and you could see shadows through the body.  
  
"Eww." Dawn said in disgust, "I can't believe that I kissed that."  
  
"Where did the Knights dig you up?" Quinn asked.  
  
"Hell." rasped the shape. It could no longer be called humanoid.  
  
"Where's my husband?" Dawn demanded of the shape.  
  
"They swapped us, he's in Hell." the shape rasped joyously.  
  
"NOOO!" Dawn screamed collapsing on the ground.  
  
Quinn and The Gatekeeper glanced at each other then burst into action The Gatekeeper and Quinn ran then dived at Buffy knocking her off her feet as Dawn stood up and raised a few feet off the ground. Lightning crackled around her body and the shape actually managed to look frightened, no mean feat for something with no facial features.  
  
"YOU WILL TELL ME WHERE HE IS!" Dawn's voice was quiet but it echoed so much that the other humans had to cover their ears for fear of bursting the eardrums.  
  
"I.I cannot." The thing stammered.  
  
"WHY NOT!" Dawn was growing tired of getting the run around.  
  
"B.because I d.do not know." The shape seemed to be having trouble holding it's form.  
  
"THAT IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH!" Dawn floated towards the creature and placed her hands on either side of it's head. Energy crackled between her palms and the creature, it screamed a horrible death rattle before Dawn's power disintegrated it completely.  
  
Dawn hovered there just staring into the distance not knowing what to do until a voice sounded at her side.  
  
"Dawn?" it was Buffy.  
  
"They have him, they have him somewhere and it's all because of me." she said as she slowly floated to the ground.  
  
As she touched the ground she collapsed and Buffy collapsed by her side and took the sobbing Dawn in her arms.  
  
"What did she do?" asked The Gatekeeper.  
  
"She used a hell of a lot of her Key power and shattered the bonds of the creatures molecules, I've never seen that, and I've only read about it happening once in recorded history." Quinn answered in a hushed voice.  
  
To be continued. 


	7. Guardians of The Key part 6

Title - Dawn, The Key: Guardians of The Key Part 6  
  
Author - Shane A. Hopkins (thesorcererbard@I-am-the-key.com)  
  
Rating - PG  
  
Disclaimer - What I don't own. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and 20th Century Fox own Buffy the Vampire Slayer and everything related to them. The Ghost Roads, The Gatekeeper and The Gatehouse come from the Buffy, The Vampire Slayer novels The Gatekeeper Trilogy Books 1, 2 and 3 by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder (Great set of books get em if you can) What I do own. Everything not owned by the above mentioned people / companies is owned by me but you may use any of it as long as you give me credit. There is one exception to this and that is Quinton Everett III, he is mine and you can't use him whatsoever.  
  
Authors Note - To be introduced to Quinton Everett III please read one of my previous stories "Love's Energy" available at http://www.geocities.com/sourcerer_quinn_3  
  
Authors Note 2 - The Hell's Circle does not exist to my knowledge. If anyone thinks it does exist then email me.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------  
  
Guardians of The Key - Part 6  
  
"So what now?" Giles asked.  
  
They were all back at the Watchers Council building in the war-room, Buffy was still comforting Dawn and Quinn and The Gatekeeper had just finished filling the rest in on what had happened.  
  
"We have to get Byzantium and make him talk." Quinn said, "He must know where in hell Jason is."  
  
"And just how do you intend to get him and then how do you intend to make him talk?" Xander asked.  
  
"The remote teleportation spell Willow's been working on lately." Quinn told him.  
  
"But it's not finished yet." Willow protested.  
  
"True, but with both The Gatekeeper and I working with you and Tara we should be able to finish it in no time at all." Quinn said sitting down.  
  
"But how do you intend to get him to talk?" Anya asked.  
  
"That one's easy." Quinn said with a smile, "We threaten to hand him over to Dawn."  
  
Giles looked vaguely shocked at that comment.  
  
"Why what good will that do?" Xander asked. Over the years he may have grown up but he was still a bit stupid now and then.  
  
"Because he knows exactly what The Key's powers are and what it can do." The Gatekeeper answered.  
  
"Giles, has the Council got another jet we can use?" Quinn asked looking at the older man.  
  
"Yes we do, and I think you might like it." He answered, "It's a new luxury model."  
  
"Why do we need the jet?" Buffy said looking up at her husband.  
  
"Because the teleportation spell works best at an altitude." he answered.  
  
"ENOUGH!" Dawn's voice cut in, she was barely whispering but the sound was echoing so much it sounded like her voice was booming, "WHERE IS THE KNIGHTS HQ?"  
  
"On the coast of France, why?." answered Willow looking distinctly frightened.  
  
"Dawn, no!" both Quinn and The Gatekeeper said as they began to rise from their seats but it was too late, Dawn's form faded into nothingness.  
  
"W.where'd she go?" Buffy said looking very concerned.  
  
"She has full access to her Key powers, she teleported directly to the Knights HQ." The Gatekeeper answered.  
  
"How much damage could she do?" Giles asked looking at both Quinn and The Gatekeeper.  
  
"She could destroy existence." Quinn answered.  
  
"We have to stop her, and now" The Gatekeeper said standing.  
  
"How? We have nowhere near the amount of power she has." Quinn said.  
  
"But we know something she doesn't." The Gatekeeper told him.  
  
"And that is?" Quinn had no idea what he was talking about.  
  
"She still thinks that she is Dawn." The Gatekeeper answered.  
  
"What do you mean thinks she is Dawn?" Buffy said.  
  
"Normally the personality of The Key is blended perfectly with the personality the monks created." The Gatekeeper said, "But now with the threat to Jason that personality is in pure shock and The Key's personality has taken over completely."  
  
"Are you saying she's not Dawn?" Tara asked.  
  
"Physically she is, she still has all the memories and feelings but the personality is pure and unadulterated power, if that power were to combust." The Gatekeeper let the sentence go unfinished.  
  
"Let me guess, not a good thing?" Xander said.  
  
"Bingo." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
"Could my teleportation spell work to bring her back?" Willow asked.  
  
"No." Quinn answered, "If what The Gatekeeper said is true then it would take immense power behind the spell to make it work."  
  
"And do we know of anyone with enough power?" Buffy asked.  
  
"I know of only one being with that much power." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
"Who?" Buffy asked him.  
  
The Gatekeeper looked distinctly worried, "You won't like this."  
  
"We put this guy here and now we're just gonna offer him his freedom in exchange for his help?" Buffy was furiously pacing the length of their room on the jet.  
  
It had been three hours since Dawn had vanished, Quinn had pointed out that they had the luxury of time as it would take her several days to search all the places that Byzantium could hide.  
  
"I know, but ever since he and Dawn got intimate he has had more power than he should have and his power now rivals that of The Key, and it's a good thing he doesn't know that" Quinn said standing and stopping her pacing.  
  
"Ever since he first showed up he has been gunning to get me one on one, I just don't like it." Buffy said stamping her foot.  
  
"Did you know you're beautiful when you're pouting?" Quinn asked with a smile.  
  
Buffy made an exasperated sound and hit him lightly on the arm, before breaking into laughter.  
  
"I thought you needed that." Quinn said pulling her into his arms.  
  
"Thanks, I did need that, didn't I." she answered hugging him tightly.  
  
"Quinn!" came Xander's voice from the communications room.  
  
"What?" he answered.  
  
"It's Dawn." came the answer.  
  
Buffy and Quinn both ran to the room where on the main screen there was a news report from France.  
  
"Just one hour ago, police say, a woman aged about 30 to 35 blew up this office building behind us, and unconfirmed reports from bystanders say she did it through some method that has yet to be explained." came the translated announcer's voice.  
  
"Oh shit." Buffy said covering her mouth.  
  
"A police statement just minutes ago announced that the building was fully staffed when this disaster happened and very few survivors are expected." the announcer continued, "Also with that statement the police released a sketch of the woman wanted in connection with this disaster." what looked like a pencil sketch of a woman came on screen. There was no mistaking who it depicted.  
  
"Dawn." Buffy's voice was barely a whisper.  
  
"Com Officer, get me Giles on a secure line, now!" Quinn said. Seconds later he was handed a phone. "Giles? Good get anybody you have in France to the site on the news channel, um, 85.Yes.Yes it is her.no, we'll handle her, just make sure we have full clearance to the crime scene ok?.good." with that Quinn gave the phone back to the person that had handed it to him.  
  
"Do we still get HIM?" Buffy asked putting the emphasis on the word him.  
  
"Yes, but just Xander, Anya, Willow and Tara will go, we have to take a small trip to France." Quinn answered.  
  
"I'll go tell the pilot to change course then shall I?" Xander asked.  
  
"Yea, thanks." Quinn replied.  
  
Another hour later the plane had dropped Quinn, Buffy and The Gatekeeper off at a private airstrip, owned by the Watchers Council, in France and continued it's journey to the vampire prison in Washington DC.  
  
"What can we say to convince him to help us?" Tara asked.  
  
"He still loves Dawn, I mean hell he still calls her 'nibblit', I think he'll love her until he dies." Xander answered.  
  
Thirty minutes later they had landed and were on their way down the five underground stories that made up the administration part of the prison, also owned by the Watchers council, the next twenty stories after that were the prison itself and on the last floor there was only one inmate . William, The Bloody also known as Spike.  
  
To be continued. 


	8. Guardians of The Key part 7

Title - Dawn, The Key: Guardians of The Key Part 7  
  
Author - Shane A. Hopkins (thesorcererbard@I-am-the-key.com)  
  
Rating - PG  
  
Disclaimer - What I don't own. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and 20th Century Fox own Buffy the Vampire Slayer and everything related to them. The Ghost Roads, The Gatekeeper and The Gatehouse come from the Buffy, The Vampire Slayer novels The Gatekeeper Trilogy Books 1, 2 and 3 by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder (Great set of books get em if you can) What I do own. Everything not owned by the above mentioned people / companies is owned by me but you may use any of it as long as you give me credit. There is one exception to this and that is Quinton Everett III, he is mine and you can't use him whatsoever.  
  
Authors Note - To be introduced to Quinton Everett III please read one of my previous stories "Love's Energy"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------  
  
Guardians of The Key - Part 7  
  
"Well Spike, will you help us?" Xander asked the vampire that faced him through the titanium reinforced bars of the cell.  
  
"Yea, but only to save nibblit from herself." Spike answered with a sneer.  
  
"Good, just remember we have stakes and we know how to use em." Xander said as he nodded to the guard who opened the cell door and let Spike out.  
  
The five of them headed to the elevator and ascended to the surface and the waiting jet plane. Once all passengers were aboard the jet took off. Destination. France  
  
"How far could she have gotten?" Buffy asked.  
  
"Too far." Quinn answered with a worried look on his face.  
  
He, Buffy and The Gatekeeper were surveying the third ruined office building that had been reported all destroyed by Dawn, all without letting the occupants exit the buildings.  
  
"We have to get to her soon or else she'll die." The Gatekeeper said as he turned to face the other two.  
  
"Why?" Buffy asked.  
  
"The Key is so powerful that it cannot occupy a physical body for too long before it begins to have a degrading effect on the tissue. " he explained.  
  
"Do you have any idea where." Buffy was interrupted by the portable phone she was carrying. It was Xander.  
  
"Hey we got Spike and we're approaching France air space, Giles has got us clearance to land, we should be with you in less than half an hour." he told her.  
  
"Great, the sooner the better." she answered before turning the phone off.  
  
"Spike will know of his power after this." The Gatekeeper told Quinn.  
  
"I know but we have to get Dawn back she's more important that any of us, have you told Buffy what will happen if Dawn's body gives out before we can sedate The Key?" Quinn asked the boy.  
  
"No." he admitted.  
  
"What will happen?" Buffy asked a little frantically.  
  
"Apocalypse." was The Gatekeeper's answer.  
  
"We have to get to her." Buffy said with determination.  
  
With that they all climbed into the Watcher's Council Humvee and took off in the direction witnesses said Dawn had gone. Giles had gotten the authority for them to have control of the investigations into what the news reports were calling bombings.  
  
Forty minutes later Xander, Anya, Willow, Tara and Spike were getting an update on what was happening from Quinn, Buffy and The Gatekeeper.  
  
".so we need to get to her ASAP." Buffy finished.  
  
"She's close." Spike said sniffing the air, "And she's bleeding."  
  
"What?" Buffy exclaimed as she, Quinn and The Gatekeeper all looked at him.  
  
"She's bleeding, I can smell her blood." He repeated.  
  
"We have less time than ever." The Gatekeeper, "Spike please come with us." he said to the vampire as he, followed by Quinn, led the way to a secluded area of the parking lot they were in.  
  
"We need you to act as a focus in a spell to bring Dawn here." The Gatekeeper told him.  
  
"Why me?" he asked.  
  
"Because you have a connection to her." Quinn answered.  
  
"Why not her husband?" Spike said the last word as if it left a bad taste in his mouth.  
  
"He is . unavailable." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
"Byzantium have him don't they?" he asked.  
  
"Sort of, now will you help us?" the Gatekeeper demanded.  
  
"Yea, what do I have to do?" the platinum blonde man answered.  
  
"Stand there and concentrate on Dawn, every detail of her body and mind." Quinn told him.  
  
While Spike did this Quinn and The Gatekeeper walked round him chanting an ancient demonic language calling upon spirits of long dead demons and gods, asking for the help of many powerful beings. Energy crackled through the air and a bubble of green energy formed around the trio. The bubble grew until it was at least ten feet wide, at which point it became a dark shade of green that seemed to glow, not with light, but with darkness. It stayed this way for several minutes while Quinn and The Gatekeeper chanted until suddenly the bubble popped and Spike was standing in the middle of a circle of blackened concrete holding a collapsed Dawn in his arms.  
  
"Dawn!" cried Buffy as she ran to her sister's side.  
  
Quinn grabbed her before she got there, "No, you touch her you'll die."  
  
"But." Buffy began.  
  
"No, we'll take care of it." Quinn told her as he pushed her gently towards Xander, who took her and held her back.  
  
Quinn went up to Spike and The Gatekeeper and asked, "Well can we saver her?"  
  
"Yes we got to her just in time another half an hour and we would be will into the apocalypse." The Gatekeeper answered.  
  
"So how do we saver her?" Spike asked.  
  
"Actually you save her, as I said you have a connection and that means you are one of only two people who could reach her, and since the other one is unavailable it's up to you." Quinn told him.  
  
"Place you hands on either side of her head and we will help to bring her awake." The Gatekeeper told him.  
  
"Using what the power of persuasion?" Spike said incredulously.  
  
"Almost, just do it we haven't much time." Quinn retorted.  
  
Spike did as they had said. Quinn and The Gatekeeper stood opposite each other with Spike and Dawn in the exact middle of them. Power crackled between the two sorcerers and even Buffy and the rest of the gang, who were standing more than two dozen feet away, could feel the power being generated.  
  
Dawn's eyes flew open. They were pure silver. Spike almost took his hands away.  
  
"YOU CAN NOT STOP ME!" came Dawn's voice from all around them. She had said it with out moving her lips, "I AM THE KEY, I AM EXISTANCE PERSONIFIED!"  
  
Dawn kept repeating this over and over again.  
  
"You are Dawn Summers, you are human!" Quinn and The Gatekeeper's voices were nowhere near as powerful as Dawn's but they resonated.  
  
They kept repeating this over and over again.  
  
Eventually Dawn stopped repeating her words and began screaming in pain, seconds later Spike joined her. The onlookers could see a bright green glow emanating from the points where Spike's hands touched Dawn's head. The screaming began to build, increasing exponentially.  
  
After a few minutes the screaming stopped, both Spike and Dawn were unconscious and barely breathing, well in Spike's case not breathing at all. The Gatekeeper and Quinn rushed to them and after checking to make sure they were as alive as they should have been called the rest of the group to come and help get them into the transport van to take them back to the jet.  
  
On the way back to the jet Dawn drifted in and out of consciousness but Spike remained insensate. Once in the Jet they were both checked out by the best physicians that the Watcher's Council had. They made a startling discovery when they checked Spike for any brain damage, the Initiative chip he had implanted in his head was, after ten years of inactivity, active and fully functional.  
  
Dawn awoke fully more than seven hour after the sorcerers had saved her life.  
  
"Oh . What happened?" she groaned.  
  
"You lost control of your power." Quinn answered.  
  
"Did . did I hurt anyone?" she said sitting up in the bed she was resting in.  
  
"Yes." Quinn said looking concerned, "You killed thousands of people in an effort to get to the Knights of Byzantium HQ and destroy it."  
  
"No" Dawn whispered looking horrified.  
  
"Yes, but it wasn't you, you have to remember that." Quinn said taking her hand and calming her down a little.  
  
"What was it then?" Dawn asked.  
  
"The Key, in it's most pure state." Quinn answered  
  
NEXT TIME ON DAWN, THE KEY.  
  
The knights of Byzantium strike back at the Guardians of The Key and their allies using all the resources they have available.  
  
STAY TUNED FOR. DAWN, THE KEY: THE REALITY OF WAR 


	9. The Reality of War part 1

Title - Dawn, The Key: The Reality of War Part 1  
  
Author - Shane A. Hopkins (thesorcererbard@I-am-the-key.com)  
  
Rating - PG  
  
Disclaimer - What I don't own. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and 20th Century Fox own Buffy the Vampire Slayer and everything related to them. The Ghost Roads, The Gatekeeper and The Gatehouse come from the Buffy, The Vampire Slayer novels The Gatekeeper Trilogy Books 1, 2 and 3 by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder (Great set of books get em if you can) What I do own. Everything not owned by the above mentioned people / companies is owned by me but you may use any of it as long as you give me credit. There is one exception to this and that is Quinton Everett III, he is mine and you can't use him whatsoever.  
  
Authors Note - To be introduced to Quinton Everett III please read one of my previous stories "Love's Energy"  
  
Authors Note 2 - This story follows directly on from my previous one "Guardians of The Key"  
  
Authors Note 3 - I know this is slightly shorter than my usual stories but that couldn't be helped sorry.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------  
  
The Reality of War - Part 1  
  
"What am I?" Dawn asked The Gatekeeper.  
  
The boy looked at her a second before answering, "You are Dawn, The Key."  
  
"I destroyed thousands of lives with my own two hands, I killed and I liked it, what does that make me?" she said growing agitated.  
  
"Dawn, stop, you can't blame yourself and you know it." said Quinton Everett III, practicing sorcerer and head Guardian of The Key, "What destroyed those people was purely the key, yes it shares your memories and your body but it wasn't you."  
  
"I know, Quinn, but I remember killing all those people and I remember liking it, that scares me, what if I do something to Jason or James and Juliet." Dawn said standing up and facing Quinn, her fear was clear in her voice but Quinn heard something else in it, anger.  
  
"Dawn, please stop it." her sister Buffy pleaded from the chair she sat in.  
  
"NO!" Dawn's voice took on the sharp edge that had only appeared when her Key personality took over, That voice could cut flesh, literally. "No I . I have to . to do something, I have . have to find Jason." her voice had returned to normal but those in the room could hear that she was struggling to keep control of herself.  
  
"You know we're doing all we can." Quinn answered, "Giles and Angel have contacts in Hell, and they'll find him."  
  
"Do you think they can calm her down?" Tara asked her wife and wiccan partner, Willow.  
  
"For once I really don't know." she answered as she reached out to Tara and drew her nearer. They were in their bed in the room in the Watcher's Council offices in London, England.  
  
"I think they will, but if Jason is dead I think we'll lose her forever." Tara told her as she cuddled closer.  
  
"I know." the worry was audible in her voice.  
  
"Don't worry honey things will work out, they have to." Tara said as she moved towards Willow and kissed her firmly on the lips.  
  
Willow broke the kiss first and said "That's why I love you, you always know how to clam me down"  
  
With that she pulled Tara into an extremely passionate kiss, one that could only end in one way.  
  
"Will they find him?" Anya asked her husband.  
  
"Yes." Xander answered, "I have no doubt they can."  
  
In truth Xander had no idea but he knew that Anya still required reassurance, she was still having problems adjusting to being human, despite loosing her powers over twenty years ago.  
  
They were lying in their bed in the room next to Willow and Tara's and although the walls were relatively thick they could still hear the sounds of passion from them.  
  
"Listen to them how can they do that with Jason missing and Dawn out of control?" Xander asked.  
  
In response Anya pulled Xander into her and kissed him passionately. Xander  
  
responded in kind.  
  
"I found him." Christophenso The Bold, chaos demon and all round softie, told Angel and Giles over the phone's screen.  
  
"Where?" Giles asked.  
  
"You won't like it." Christophenso said, "He's in Paynetta."  
  
"You're right I don't like it." Angel said.  
  
"I've heard of Paynetta, it's exactly like the hell described in the Christian bible." Giles said looking between the screen and Angel.  
  
"Yup, and there are a lot of demons there who would love to torture a human." Angel said.  
  
"Yea well they must know who his wife is, coz their not going near him." Christophenso said with a small smile.  
  
"You're kidding." Angel said in amazement.  
  
"Nope, but you better hurry coz I don't think it'll last forever." Christophenso said, "So I'll leave you guys to it just call if you need any help."  
  
"Will do Chris." Angel answered as he reached out and turned off the phone.  
  
Less than half an hour later a gathering was under way in the war-room seated around the table in the middle of the room were Xander, Anya, Willow and Tara, Buffy and Quinn, The Gatekeeper, Dawn, Giles and his wife Marie. Angel was standing at the head of the table outlining the battle plan for rescuing Jason from hell.  
  
". and with a bit of luck and a lot of skill we get out with few casualties on our part." he finished.  
  
"How many people do we need?" Giles asked.  
  
"As many as we can get." Angel answered.  
  
"The Guardian's will be supplying the bulk of the forces led by Dawn and myself." Quinn said.  
  
"The three main teams will consist of Dawn and Quinn, who will be looking for Jason, Buffy Willow, Tara and myself watching their back and The Gatekeeper, Xander, Anya and Giles, who will stay here and make sure this place is safe." Angel said.  
  
"Lets go." Dawn said standing up.  
  
"We should arm up first, shall we?" Buffy said standing and placing her hand on her sisters shoulder.  
  
"Ok." Dawn answered placing her hand on top of Buffy's.  
  
Half an hour later all six intrepid rescuers and their backup were armed to the teeth with guns, stakes, swords, knives, battle axes and crosses. Giles and Xander were preparing the Council buildings defences in case the Knights choose that moment to attack.  
  
"Gatekeeper, can you open a door to Paynetta, please." Quinn asked.  
  
"Certainly." The Gatekeeper said, he began to draw a circle in the air gradually going faster and faster until the circle glowed and became a solid disc which when The Gatekeeper touched it spiralled open. Inside the circle was a switch.  
  
The Gatekeeper took the circle and handed it to Quinn, "This switch operates the portal to Paynetta, all you do to open the portal is flip the switch but remember the portal does not move with you, you will have to remember where you entered Paynetta."  
  
"Got it, everyone ready to go?" Quinn said turning to the group.  
  
The Guardians answered with a resounding, "Aye, Aye sir!"  
  
Buffy and the rest of Quinn's friends just nodded. Quinn reached into the circle and flipped the switch.  
  
"Right, half The Guardians in front and the other half bring up the rear, right now move out!" Quinn said.  
  
Fifteen heavily armed warriors entered the portal that had opened behind Quinn who followed them, behind him was Dawn, then Buffy, Willow, Tara and Angel then the last fifteen warriors followed them and the portal closed behind the last one.  
  
"Can they succeed?" Giles asked The Gatekeeper.  
  
The boy looked up at him, a concerned look on his face, "I don't know."  
  
To be continued. 


	10. The Reality of War part 2

Title - Dawn, The Key: The Reality of War Part 2  
  
Author - Shane A. Hopkins (thesorcererbard@I-am-the-key.com) Rating - PG  
  
Disclaimer - What I don't own. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and 20th Century Fox own Buffy the Vampire Slayer and everything related to them. The Ghost Roads, The Gatekeeper and The Gatehouse come from the Buffy, The Vampire Slayer novels The Gatekeeper Trilogy Books 1, 2 and 3 by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder (Great set of books get em if you can) What I do own. Everything not owned by the above mentioned people / companies is owned by me but you may use any of it as long as you give me credit. There is one exception to this and that is Quinton Everett III, he is mine and you can't use him whatsoever.  
  
Authors Note - To be introduced to Quinton Everett III please read one of my previous stories "Love's Energy"  
  
Authors Note 2 - This story follows directly on from my previous one "Guardians of The Key"  
  
Authors Note 3 - In this story there are some comments that sound racist but I want to point out that they are just there to make sense in with the mythology of the universe that Joss created and that I am building on. and that I do not mean any harm or offence to any race's or cultures..  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------  
  
The Reality of War - Part 2  
  
"Where are we?" Dawn asked Quinn when the stepped out of the portal.  
  
"Paynetta" Quinn answered before turning to the assembled warriors, "Ok Guardians, spread out and recon!"  
  
"Quinn," came The Gatekeeper's voice from through the portal, "Catch."  
  
Suddenly a small box came flying through, Quinn caught it and opened it. Inside were several small circuit chips.  
  
"Apply it to the region just behind your ear." The Gatekeepers voice said.  
  
Quinn did as he said.  
  
"Quinn, can you hear me?" this time The Gatekeeper's voice came from just beside Quinn's ear.  
  
"Yea, you?" he answered  
  
"Coming in loud and clear." the boy's voice answered, "Ok I'm closing the portal."  
  
The interdimensional portal closed with a light pop.  
  
"Angel, Willow, Tara, Dawn, Buffy put one of these behind your ear," Quinn said handing them each a circuit chip, "It's a communication chip."  
  
"Can we go now?" Dawn said impatiently.  
  
"Yea, Angel, you, Willow and Tara take ten Guardians and recon over that way." Quinn said pointing towards the red hills off to his right, "and Dawn, Buffy, myself and another ten Guardians will go this way, I want to leave the remaining Guardians here to mark the portal."  
  
"Right, Willow, Tara, this way if you please?" Angel said.  
  
"Rodriguez, you stay here guard the portal, here take this," Quinn said handing him a communications chip.  
  
After walking for about half an hour Quinn and his group came across what looked like a battlefield.  
  
"Oh my god, look at all those bodies." Dawn said looking around.  
  
Buffy gasped and put a hand to her mouth.  
  
Littering the ground were thousands upon thousands of dead bodies, some human, most demon, and a few that were in between.  
  
"Aftermath of the Eighty Third Demon War." Quinn told her.  
  
"Eighty third?" came a voice from one of the Guardians.  
  
"According to myth the Demon Wars raged for millennia with the two sides fighting to a stand still each time they clashed." Quinn began lecturing, "The sides that supporting the humans would never win, but neither would the side that supported the demons. It would be an eternal Mexican standoff."  
  
Quinn's sentence was cut off mid way by a werewolf that came roaring at them and jumped and bit Quinn's shoulder.  
  
Quinn screamed in pain as the Guardians ran forward drawing their silver swords and attacking the werewolf. Dawn and Buffy ran to the now unconscious Quinn, Buffy held a hand on the wound to try to stop the bleeding. The wolf had put up a good fight but was no match for 15 warriors with silver swords. While some of them took the wolf away and buried it, one of them came running to Quinn with a Med Kit in her hands.  
  
After they applied a bandage to the wound Dawn asked the warrior, "Is there anything else we can do for him?"  
  
"We have to get him back to The Gatekeeper, he'll know what to do." she answered.  
  
The warriors made a stretcher to carry Quinn back to the portal and got under way. Dawn used her communications chip to inform the other team, "Angel, Quinn's been hurt and we're on our way back to the portal."  
  
"Copy that, and Dawn we just found Jason, I was just about to contact you." Angel answered.  
  
"Is he alright?" Dawn asked.  
  
"He's fine, we're on our way back to the portal, so you can see him in about half an hour." Angel said before disconnecting.  
  
Nearly half an hour later they had the portal and it's guards in sight and off to their left they could see Angel and the other team heading to the portal. Dawn ran to Jason and they almost fell into each other's arms.  
  
"Jason, I missed you." Dawn cried.  
  
"And I you." he replied.  
  
"Enough, we have to get back to our world." Angel interrupted.  
  
"Yes, we need to get Quinn to The Gatekeeper." Buffy said as Dawn pulled away slightly from Jason.  
  
The three teams merged into one and headed through the portal. When they walked through the opening into the Watcher's Council building The Gatekeeper and Giles were waiting for them.  
  
"Quick put him on the table." The Gatekeeper said urgently.  
  
The warriors carrying him manoeuvred Quinn onto the table and The Gatekeeper asked, "What happened?"  
  
"He was bitten by a werewolf." Dawn answered.  
  
"This could be a problem." The Gatekeeper told the gathered people.  
  
"Why?" asked Buffy.  
  
"He is now infected with Lycanthropes disease." he answered.  
  
"He'll turn into a werewolf?" Dawn said.  
  
"Maybe, maybe not." The Gatekeeper said, "Lycanthropy affects different races differently, for example Caucasians turn into werecanines, African races turn into werefelines, Asian and Hispanic races turn into wererodents and Pacific Island races turn into werereptiles, even those versions have variations in them like Russians and people from that area of the world turn into white werewolves, other European races become black werewolves and Americans become grey werewolves."  
  
"So, what will Quinn become?" Buffy asked as she picked up and holding his hand.  
  
"I don't know, he was born with magic in his blood, the lycanthropy will interact with that, the result will be unpredictable." The Gatekeeper explained.  
  
To be continued. 


	11. The Reality of War part 3

Title - Dawn, The Key: The Reality of War Part 3  
  
Author - Shane A. Hopkins (thesorcererbard@I-am-the-key.com)  
  
Rating - PG  
  
Disclaimer - What I don't own. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and 20th Century Fox own Buffy the Vampire Slayer and everything related to them. The Ghost Roads, The Gatekeeper and The Gatehouse come from the Buffy, The Vampire Slayer novels The Gatekeeper Trilogy Books 1, 2 and 3 by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder (Great set of books get em if you can) What I do own. Everything not owned by the above mentioned people / companies is owned by me but you may use any of it as long as you give me credit. There is one exception to this and that is Quinton Everett III, he is mine and you can't use him whatsoever.  
  
Authors Note - To be introduced to Quinton Everett III please read one of my previous stories "Love's Energy"  
  
Authors Note 2 - This story follows directly on from my previous one "Guardians of The Key"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------  
  
The Reality of War - Part 3  
  
"So, Quinn will change under a full moon?" Giles asked.  
  
"For once, I have to say I don't know." The Gatekeeper answered.  
  
"No, I won't." Quinn said his eyes flying open. They glowed green.  
  
The group gathered around the table on which he was laying backed up in shock. Quinn blinked a couple of times and his eyes turned back to normal.  
  
"I have knowledge of lycanthropy, I studied it at Uni." he said, "A magical being, like a sorcerer, when infected by lycanthropy will have full control over when the change happens and will have full control over himself when in werecreature form."  
  
"This could be a great advantage in a fight." Angel said.  
  
"Yes it would but what animal will you turn into?" Buffy asked Quinn.  
  
"That is my choice, a magical being infected by lycanthropy can choose which form he will turn into when he first changes." Quinn answered.  
  
"Do you know what you want to turn into?" The Gatekeeper asked.  
  
"Yes." Quinn answered getting up off the table, his eyes glowed green and his form began to blur and change as he grew taller and hunched over until he was on all fours his skin became like a leopards and he let our a growl that would have put even the most fiercest wild animal to shame.  
  
The others in the room moved up close to the wall and tried to stay out of reach of the creature that was Quinn, but as soon as it had started Quinn changed back his form blurred and his shape reverted to normal.  
  
"Wow." exclaimed Dawn, "What was that?"  
  
"A wereleopard, the fastest and strongest of the lycanthropes." The Gatekeeper answered.  
  
"I feel power coursing through my veins, I feel strong and powerful." Quinn said flexing his arms.  
  
"You will have to be careful, you might loose control and if something happens you could kill someone." The Gatekeeper said walking over to him.  
  
"Sir! We have incoming!" yelled a radar technician from the next room.  
  
"What kind?" Quinn asked him as he ran into the room followed by the rest of the group.  
  
"Looks like at least two dozen flying demons and hundreds of ground forces." the technician replied.  
  
"Mobilise the troops and deploy the building defences." Quinn yelled to the other technicians around the room.  
  
"Aye, aye sir!" came the reply as there was an explosion of action.  
  
"Dawn, Jason get to the safe room now!" Quinn called to them.  
  
"But I want to help." Dawn cried back.  
  
"Well we need you safe and unharmed, we can't guarantee that if you're fighting." Quinn told her.  
  
"And me, why do I have to go?" Jason asked.  
  
"You'll be there in case we fall, don't let The Key fall into the hands of the Knights, now GO!" Quinn yelled.  
  
"Gone." said Jason dragging Dawn out of the room.  
  
After Jason and Dawn had left, a communications officer yelled to Giles and Quinn, "We have a report from the Watchers Prison center in Washington."  
  
"What is it, don't they know we're a bit busy?" Quinn called back.  
  
"They're under attack!" the officer called back.  
  
"Damn." Giles swore.  
  
"We can't worry about that now."  
  
"Sir, communication with the facility has been cut off." the officer called.  
  
"Switch to the satellite." Quinn told him.  
  
"Done, still no contact." the officer said over the sound of explosions and fighting that could be heard coming from the rest of the building and from outside it.  
  
"Can you get a visual?" Giles asked.  
  
"Yes Sir." the officer said as he began tapping in commands to his computer  
  
keyboard.  
  
"Sir, Russia Britain and the US have all gone on highest alert status, they say nuclear war has been declared!" the officer who was monitoring official channels.  
  
"Sir, visual of Washington facility on the main screen." the communications officer said.  
  
There was a collective gasp from the people who were gathered in the room.  
  
On the screen where there should have been a thriving metropolis was a smouldering ruin.  
  
"Oh my god, how many." Buffy asked in shock.  
  
"Millions, maybe more." Quinn answered.  
  
"Those bastards." Buffy swore.  
  
"People are disserting, they know of the attack in Washington!" Jason yelled as he ran back into the room.  
  
"Where's Dawn?" Quinn asked him.  
  
"She's locked in the safe room." he answered.  
  
"Gatekeeper, get down there please, keep an eye on her." Quinn asked the boy.  
  
"On my way." he replied walking out of the room.  
  
Suddenly the entire building shook and the roof began to crumble.  
  
"Sir, all outside and internal communication has been interrupted." the communications officer called.  
  
"They dropped a bomb." Quinn said sadly.  
  
"A . nuclear bomb?" Buffy asked.  
  
"Yes." Quinn answered, "Probably a re-exploding one, we'll be dead in less than half an hour." he slumped into the nearest chair.  
  
Dawn was cowering in the safe room when the bomb exploded the entire room went up in flame but she was protected by a shield of energy. shockwaves hit the shield and shook Dawn about and with one very violent shake knocked her unconscious.  
  
Three hours later when she regained consciousness she found her self in the ruins of the Watchers Council building. Sections of it were still on fire and she could see no living people, she could see a few bodies, and then she spotted something she recognised, a portal to the Ghost Roads.  
  
Just inside she could see The Gatekeepers barely moving body.  
  
She ran to him and lifted his head into her lap, "Jacques, are you alive?"  
  
"Y.yes." his voice was weak, "But I won't be for long, I'm dieing."  
  
"What can I do?" Dawn asked tears welling up in her eyes.  
  
"Q.Quinn passed all his magical power to me before he died and when I die I will pass it all, his and mine, on to you." The Gatekeeper said as if saying his last will and testament, "T.this will make you the most powerful l.living creature in all  
  
existence, you will have absolute."  
  
The Gatekeeper's voice trailed off as the life left his body and his power surged into Dawn with such force that it threw her back almost a mile, when she stood up she felt her power flowing through her, she reached out her mind and opened a portal to the real world and walked through.  
  
Dawn stood in the middle of the rubble and slumped to her knees and began weeping.  
  
"You have unlimited power and you choose to weep, you can do something." came The Gatekeeper's voice from nowhere.  
  
"What can I do?" Dawn asked it.  
  
"Anything, anything you want." The Gatekeeper's voice faded into nothingness.  
  
"Anything?" Dawn said as she looked up.  
  
Dawn threw back her head and screamed, light burst from her chest and spread over the surrounding area. It didn't stop there it kept flowing over the surface of the entire planet, her scream with it. The light and scream flowed on until the planet glowed like a new sun.  
  
Then it suddenly stopped.  
  
NEXT TIME ON DAWN, THE KEY.  
  
The shocking conclusion to this trilogy.  
  
STAY TUNED FOR. DAWN, THE KEY: GHOST'S OF THE FUTURE 


	12. The Ghosts of the Future part 1

Title - Dawn, The Key: Ghost's of the Future Part 1  
  
Author - Shane A. Hopkins (thesorcererbard@I-am-the-key.com)  
  
Rating - PG  
  
Disclaimer - What I don't own. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and 20th Century Fox own Buffy the Vampire Slayer and everything related to them. The Ghost Roads, The Gatekeeper and The Gatehouse come from the Buffy, The Vampire Slayer novels The Gatekeeper Trilogy Books 1, 2 and 3 by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder (Great set of books get em if you can) What I do own. Everything not owned by the above mentioned people / companies is owned by me but you may use any of it as long as you give me credit. There is one exception to this and that is Quinton Everett III, he is mine and you can't use him whatsoever.  
  
Authors Note - To be introduced to Quinton Everett III please read one of my previous stories "Love's Energy"  
  
Authors Note 2 - This story follows directly on from my previous one "The Reality of War"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------  
  
Ghost's of the Future - Part 1  
  
Dawn threw back her head and screamed, light burst from her chest and spread over the surrounding area. It didn't stop there it kept flowing over the surface of the entire planet, her scream with it. The light and scream flowed on until the planet glowed like a new sun.  
  
Then it suddenly stopped. The light rushed back into Dawn, she found that it was too much she wished for someone to help her. Suddenly the power lessened and she could think. Any being that was not on the earth or in the general vicinity of the planet could see that the planet was almost sparkling, as if it were a toy that had just been taken out of it's box for the first time.  
  
Dawn stood up and looked around, she found that to either side of her stood Quinn and The Gatekeeper and that they were all standing on thin air about ten miles off the ground..  
  
"What happened?" she asked.  
  
"You changed reality." Quinn answered.  
  
"Past, present and future." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
"Everything looks brand new." Dawn said as she took a step forward.  
  
"You have restored everything." Quinn said as he stepped up to her and placed a hand on her shoulder.  
  
Dawn felt energy rush from his hand and into her through her shoulder.  
  
"We have restored everything." The Gatekeeper said as he did the same gesture to Dawn's other shoulder.  
  
The power flowing through them all was almost too much for Dawn to handle, she shook off their hands and turned to look at them a silent question in her eyes.  
  
"We are joined now because we threw our power to you we form the Triumvirate, the most powerful force in creation." Quinn said looking at Dawn.  
  
"But where are all the people?" she asked.  
  
"You recreated the planet but you have yet to start it living again." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
"What will they remember?" Dawn asked.  
  
"What you wanted them to, the war between the Guardians and The Knights never happened, Jason was never taken and no one that was killed by the nuclear devices actually died because the bombs were never dropped." Quinn said.  
  
"Why can we remember?" Dawn asked.  
  
"Because we were protected by the field of energy that actually regenerated the world. It was sentient and it knew that someone would need to remember so it didn't happen again." The Gatekeeper answered her.  
  
"So how did you come back to life?" she asked.  
  
"When the power retreated from the surface of the planet and back into you, you couldn't handle it and you wanted someone to help you." Quinn answered.  
  
"And because our energy was some of what you used it reverted to it's familiar forms, us." The Gatekeeper added.  
  
"How do I restart the world?" Dawn asked.  
  
"We share our power with you and you think what you want to happen." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
"Will they know anything happened?" Dawn asked.  
  
"Most will have the feeling called déjà vu, some will remember fragments and a very few will remember most of what did happen and then there is us, we alone will remember everything." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
"Buffy?" Dawn asked a complex question in that one word.  
  
"She will remember a little, you can tell her if you wish." Quinn answered.  
  
"Let's do it." She said with a determined look on her face.  
  
Quinn and The Gatekeeper stepped forward and took her hands and Dawn felt the power flow through her. She screamed and light burst from her eyes, spreading out to cover the world again and this time when it flowed back to her, she could hear the sounds of a bustling world going on around them.  
  
"Perhaps we should get down from here, before we get hit by a plane or something?" Quinn said with a small smile on his face.  
  
Minutes later they were in the main conference room in the Watchers Council  
  
Headquarters, explaining to the rest of the gang what had happened.  
  
"So everyone died?" Xander asked, "Even you?"  
  
"No I lived, but with The Gatekeeper and Quinn's power, I could fix it so things were different." Dawn told him as she sat in the chair opposite him and next to Jason.  
  
"So, what did you do with Byzantium?" Giles asked.  
  
"He died in the assault on the Knights HQ ten years ago." Dawn answered.  
  
"The demons called off the bounty on The Key and now no one will come after it so Dawn, here, is safe." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
"Good." Jason said as he put his arm around Dawn and hugged her to him.  
  
"Well, we have to get back home to James and Juliet." Dawn said, "Quinn, are you coming?"  
  
"No, I need some time with my beautiful wife." Quinn said walking over to Buffy.  
  
"I suggest that we all head home now that this 'crisis' is over." Giles suggested.  
  
"Good idea." Anya and Xander said together.  
  
Half an hour later Dawn and Jason were back home and tucked up in bed, fast asleep.  
  
But all was not well Dawn was dreaming. Not just any dream. She was having a nightmare.  
  
Faces she had never seen were swooping at her like attacking birds, each one saying, "You killed us, you made it so we don't exist." The dream kept getting worse as the faces began getting more and more horrific. They were also multiplying exponentially soon they were everywhere Dawn found that they covered her all shouting at her.  
  
Dawn woe up screaming, which woke Jason who immediately saw that Dawn was very upset.  
  
"What's wrong?" he asked.  
  
"A nightmare nothing to worry about." Dawn said getting out of bed, "I'm just going to get a glass of water."  
  
"Okay." Jason said.  
  
Seconds later Dawn was in the kitchen when suddenly there was a flash of light and The Gatekeeper and Quinn were both standing in the room.  
  
"You had the nightmare too?" Quinn asked.  
  
"Yes, what did it mean?" she asked.  
  
"Those were the Ghosts of the Future." The Gatekeeper answered, "They are the spirits of the people who no longer exist or will no longer exist."  
  
"They were caused by changing the timeline." Quinn said, "We just found out about them."  
  
"Will they ever go away?" Dawn asked.  
  
"Yes, you are only visited by them on the fist night after the change." Quinn said as he and The Gatekeeper sat down.  
  
"Did they visit you two too?" Dawn asked.  
  
"Yes, that's how we knew that you had seen them." The Gatekeeper told her.  
  
"Did you tell Jason?" Quinn asked.  
  
"Hell no, that would only frighten him." she said.  
  
"Mom?" came James' voice from the doorway.  
  
"Yea sweetie?" Dawn said looking at the door.  
  
"What's going on?" he asked, "Why did history change?"  
  
Quinn and The Gatekeeper both swung their heads to look at James.  
  
"What did you say?" Quinn demanded standing up.  
  
"I remember things that didn't happen." James said.  
  
"What things?" The Gatekeeper said standing up beside Quinn.  
  
"Like Dad got kidnapped by some knights and you went on a rampage." James said pointing at Dawn.  
  
"But that's not what happened, is it?" The Gatekeeper asked.  
  
"No, Dad didn't get kidnapped and Mom didn't go on a rampage." the boy answered.  
  
"We seem to have a problem." Dawn said looking between Quinn and The Gatekeeper.  
  
To be continued. 


	13. The Ghosts of the Future part 2

Title - Dawn, The Key: Ghost's of the Future Part 2  
  
Author - Shane A. Hopkins (thesorcererbard@I-am-the-key.com)  
  
Rating - PG  
  
Disclaimer - What I don't own. Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and 20th Century Fox own Buffy the Vampire Slayer and everything related to them. The Ghost Roads, The Gatekeeper and The Gatehouse come from the Buffy, The Vampire Slayer novels The Gatekeeper Trilogy Books 1, 2 and 3 by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder (Great set of books get em if you can) What I do own. Everything not owned by the above mentioned people / companies is owned by me but you may use any of it as long as you give me credit. There is one exception to this and that is Quinton Everett III, he is mine and you can't use him whatsoever.  
  
Authors Note - To be introduced to Quinton Everett III please read one of my previous stories "Love's Energy"  
  
Authors Note 2 - This story follows directly on from my previous one "The Reality of War"  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------  
  
Ghost's of the Future - Part 2  
  
"He shouldn't be remembering those events." Quinn said.  
  
It was midmorning and Quinn and The Gatekeeper had just finished asking James and Juliet questions about the past, they had discovered that James had memories of both timelines but Juliet did not.  
  
"It could be a side effect of his genetics." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
"Then why is it not happening to Juliet?" Quinn asked no one in particular.  
  
"I wish we had something we could reference for this." Dawn said, "Because this is starting to scare me."  
  
"Don't worry I don't thing there will be any harmful side effects." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
"She's right." Quinn said quietly.  
  
The Gatekeeper stared at him, "Why do you say that?"  
  
"neither of the children should be showing any abilities tied into their heritage until they're 14." Quinn said looking thoughtful, "We always thought they would display some abilities that the Key has but we could never figure out which ones."  
  
"Yea, and?" Dawn prompted when he paused.  
  
"If he's displaying abilities beyond those he should have then he may have accelerated mental growth." Quinn said, "Have his grades been getting better?"  
  
"Yes, he's straight A+ student." Dawn answered.  
  
"That could come from the same cause." The Gatekeeper said matching Quinn's  
  
thoughtful expression.  
  
"Why?" Dawn asked.  
  
"It could be our altering of the timelines." Quinn said looking at The Gatekeeper for confirmation.  
  
"But it could be anything." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
There was a scream, Dawn and Quinn ran to the children's bedroom there lying on the floor unconscious was James, Juliet was the one screaming.  
  
"What happened?" Dawn said as she ran to her son.  
  
"H-he just collapsed, I-I thought he was f-faking it." Juliet said when she stopped screaming.  
  
"Dawn, pleas may I?" The Gatekeeper said coming up behind her.  
  
Dawn moved aside and let him examine the boy.  
  
"This isn't magical." he declared.  
  
"Hospital. Now." Quinn said picking up the boy and standing next to Dawn, The Gatekeeper came and stood next to them and after focusing his powers he was able to open a portal between the two points. The trio stepped through and found themselves outside Sunnydale Memorial Hospital.  
  
Quinn ran to the door, pushing it open with his back and yelling, "We need a doctor!", Dawn and The Gatekeeper ran in after him.  
  
Several nurses ran to them, one with a gurney, onto which Quinn laid Jason.  
  
"What happened?" asked a male doctor as he came up to them.  
  
"He just collapsed." Dawn answered.  
  
"Has he had any blows to the head?" the doctor asked.  
  
"No, not that we know of." Quinn answered.  
  
"Are you the father?" the doctor asked.  
  
"No, we are his uncles." Quinn said indicating The Gatekeeper and himself, "This is his mother." he said indicating Dawn.  
  
"We will need you to sign some forms." the doctor said to Dawn.  
  
"Okay." Dawn said following him over to the counter.  
  
"What could the problem be?" Quinn asked The Gatekeeper.  
  
"I've only seen it once before, about ten years ago." he answered.  
  
"What was it?" Quinn asked.  
  
"A brain tumour." he answered very quietly.  
  
"Damn." Quinn said in an equally quiet voice, he pulled a cellphone from his pocket and dialled a number, "Buffy, it's Quinn . You need to get to Sunnydale Memorial, ASAP . No, it's Jason." with that he hung up.  
  
"Good idea." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
Dawn walked back towards them, "They're taking him up to get a CAT scan." she said.  
  
"It'll be okay." Quinn said pulling Dawn to him.  
  
Dawn gave a small laugh.  
  
"What is it?" Quinn asked.  
  
"Just remembering when mom was in hospital getting a CAT scan, I asked Buffy if it was tested on cats." she said looking up into his face.  
  
"Where is he?" Jason said as he came into the hospital and walked up to them.  
  
Dawn moved away from Quinn and turned to hug her husband, "He's getting a CAT scan."  
  
"Do they have any ideas?" Jason asked.  
  
"No." Dawn said.  
  
"Mrs Summers?" the doctor said coming up to where they were sitting in the waiting room.  
  
"Yes?" she answered as she stood up.  
  
"Your son . has a mass . in his brain." the doctor looked uncomfortable.  
  
Dawn broke down, sobbing she started to fall to the floor, Jason caught her.  
  
"Can you do anything?" Quinn asked.  
  
"We.we really don't know yet, we'll goin and see if the tumour is operable." the doctor said before turning to Jason, "We'll need you to sign some forms to authorise that."  
  
"Okay." Jason said as he handed Dawn to Quinn.  
  
Buffy, Willow, Tara, Xander, Anya, Giles and Marie had all turned up about two hours later and Quinn had just finished bringing them up to speed on what had happened when the doctor approached them, he did not look happy.  
  
"What is it?" Jason asked.  
  
"I-I'm sorry, your son, he didn't survive the operation, I'm very sorry." the said, Dawn let out a scream before breaking down completely, even the battle hardened Buffy and Jason were crying. Quinn could see the others barely holding back tears, and he felt a single tear roll down his cheek.  
  
Quinn went to Buffy, as the others all paired up and comforted each other. The Gatekeeper kept a respectful distance, he turned to the doctor, "What happened?"  
  
The doctor led him away from the group, "It was an extensive brain tumour, it had spread through most of his brain."  
  
"Shouldn't there have been some warning signs?" The Gatekeeper asked.  
  
"Yes, and I don't see how they could have been missed." the doctor said looking over at Dawn and Jason.  
  
"Do not even think that, doctor." The Gatekeeper said with a look of almost anger on his face.  
  
"I'm sorry, but the signs are unmissible." the doctor said turning back to The Gatekeeper.  
  
"James was good at hiding things from people, when he was five he hid a broken arm for a bit more than a day before Dawn found out completely by accident." The Gatekeeper said.  
  
"Ladies and Gentlemen, we are gathered here today to bid farewell to a much loved and much missed young man." the priest stood on a small platform overlooking the small grave in Restfield Cemetery, "James Quinton Summers-Denel, was only eight years of age, that is a short time on this earth, but it must be remembered that he is now in a better place with our lord God almighty, James' mother has requested to say a few words."  
  
The funeral had ended several hours ago but Dawn and Jason stood over the grave of their son, Buffy and Quinn were standing a respectful distance away. Juliet was being babysat by Willow and Tara.  
  
"How? He was so young." Dawn said with a sob.  
  
"I know." Jason said.  
  
They stood there looking at the gravestone.  
  
James Quinton Summers-Denel 2014 - 2022  
  
He lived briefly but he will live on forever in our hearts  
  
THE END 


End file.
